Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-02-10
PRTROLEUM,
History, Preducaien and Uses .
the Oil.

PETROLEUM.,
Histsry, Preducaien and Uses Of
the Oil.
Petroleum Is as told as the hills" and
Il altogether stored away in ample quan.
titles below the shale far beneath the
eurfacs Of the earth. It sometimes rises
to the surface ty the natural process OF
seeking level, and it is sometimes fore
cd up by the action of gases bearing
upon it. There are petroleum wells in
Persis, Pruss;. and and P9land else 10 .s;aiy.
Germany and India. In fact, thev ~. :...
found e.. over the world. Tie oil wss
us.a us..a IN Babylon And Nineveh. The sa.
cred fires that burned constantly, year
in and out, at whose shrine worshipers
from far aud near assembled to perform
religious rites, received the natural fuel
for flame from escaping coal oil gases.
Petroleum a. o celebrated article OF com.
merce was not developed until the dis.
covery Of the copious oil deposits in
Northwestern Pennsylvania, and the ap.
plication Of American systems for utiliz.
ing the the Illuminating product and the
residuum. It's uses throughout have
almost worked q revolution in the field
of inorganic chemistry. The encyclope-
dias--Euglish and American--deal ex-
tensively with the subject and the stat
istics of production are voluminous, as
we'll as the description of the various
methods of taking the oil frcm the
ground by pump, through pipes aud the
building Of extensive pipelines from
the old fields to the great cities for the
transportation of the product. One book
of reference = Johnson's Treasury Of
Useful Knowledge"-contains reference
to the oil Industry in Cal fornia in which
Professor Siiliman is quoted az authori-
ty.
1t is fact not generally known that
the residuum of petroleum after the illu.
minating oil has been extracted. contains
the ingredients for the manufacture of
many useful articles of merchandise,
ASIDE from fuel and lubricating oils. In
the manufacture of perfumeTy it is ex.
tensively used on account of certain pro-
perties that give lasting strength to the
perfume. /. is extensively used in pro-
ducing vasaline and other articles of like
kind. 1t has been observed that the
product of the wells of Santa Barbara,
Santa Cruz and LIS Angeles counties
does not yield TO the same treatment in
refining as the Pennsylvania crude oils.
The Illuminating quality is not SO valua-
BILE, but the residuum is richer, and as
scientific experiments progress, the value
of the product is enhanced in various
ways.
Tie fret developments in California
were made in about 1865 by Alvinza
Hayward at the ex. Mission ranch of San
Buenaventura in Ventura county.
About the same time the California and
Philadelphia Petroleum Company, of
which the late Thomas A. Scott, was q
large owner, commenced operations and
drilled some six wells in Los Angeles
county and on the Ojai ranch, then in
Santa Barbara county. Stanford Bros.
also operated for oil on the ex.Mission
ranch by running tunnels. At this time
the oil district was completely isolated
from transp rtation and supplies; the
machinery employed was crude and all
the production had to be hauled long
distances in barrels to shipping point
ut the ocean; and after large sums of
money had been invested without any
adequate returns, all operations were
finally abandoned.
The advent of the Southern Pacific
Railroad in Los Angeles county was
finally the means of reviving develop
ments in Los Angeles county, and the
first really successful operations in Cali.
fornia were made in 1875 by the Cali.
fornia Star Oil Company, which drilled
several wells in the Pico Canon, in the
San Fernando petroleum district, which
is situated about thirty miles north of
Los Angeles, Newhall being the ship.
ping point, on the Southern Pacific
Railroad. Here was obtained the first
green oil of light gravity from which
good Illuminating oil could be made
all the oil heretofore produced having
been too heavy to successfully refine
An oil refinery of 100 barrels per day
capacity was erected at Newhall in
1878, and has since been enlarged and
continuously operated.
In 1879 the Pacitic Coast Oil Com.
pany was organized and at once pro-
ceeded to the work of vigorous devel-
opment. 1t gradually absorbed the sew
eral companies then operating aud Sc.
cured the great body of Oil territory
lying between Newhall, on the rail.
roam, and Santa Paula in Ventura
county. They erected the large aud
complete refinery at Alameda Point,
having capacity of 500 barrels daily,
and their production has since kept
their works in continuous operation.
They drilled wells, constructed pipe.
lines and tank.car lines and have now
in successful operation seventeen wells
in Los Angeles county, from which
they are getting production of about
$50 barrels per day. This oil is AZ
specific gravity, green in color, and the
products as refined as gardine, beuzine,
water-white Illuminating oil, standard
white oil, lubricating oils, gas oil and
fuel oil. This company run line Of
fifty tank.cars between Newhall, Los
Angeles and Alameda Point. They have
pipeline from their wells to Newhall,
eight miles in length, and from thence
to Santa Paula, forty miles in length,
connecting at the latter point with the
pipeline of the Mission Transfer Com.
pany, running thence to the ocean at
San Buenaventura.
Is 1882 the Mission Transfer Company
was organized and purchased the. Gil
rights OF the ex-Mission ranch, which it
subsequently leased TO Eastern oil oIer
ators, reserving royalty in the produc.
tion and the control of marketing. They
have drilled ten wells, and now have q
daily production of 275 barrels Of oil of
about 25 degrees gravity, which is
wholly used for fuel purposes. This
company has pipe line from the Oiai
ranch, running via Santa Paula canon to
the Ocean at Ventura, which, with its
lateral lines, is thirty miles in length.